Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age. As one of the world's most famous film stars, Taylor was recognized for her acting ability and for her glamorous lifestyle, beauty and distinctive violet eyes.
National Velvet (1944) was Taylor's first success, and she starred in Father of the Bride (1950), A Place in the Sun (1951), Giant (1956), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), and Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for BUtterfield 8 (1960), played the title role in Cleopatra (1963), and married her co-star Richard Burton. They appeared together in 11 films, including Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), for which Taylor won a second Academy Award. From the mid-1970s, she appeared less frequently in film, and made occasional appearances in television and theatre.
Her much publicized personal life included eight marriages and several life-threatening illnesses. From the mid-1980s, Taylor championed HIV and AIDS programs; she co-founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research in 1985, and the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation in 1993. She received the Presidential Citizens Medal, the Legion of Honour, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and a Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, who named her seventh on their list of the "Greatest American Screen Legends". Taylor died of congestive heart failure at the age of 79.
Academy Awards
Best Actress
Golden Globe Awards
Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
British Academy Film Awards
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Known For
The Flintstones
(1994)
Pearl Slaghoople
Cleopatra
(1963)
Cleopatra
Quo Vadis
(1951)
Christian Prisoner in Arena (uncredited)
Giant
(1956)
Leslie Lynnton Benedict
Becket
(1964)
Blonde Village Woman (uncredited)
Suddenly, Last Summer
(1959)
Catherine Holly
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(1966)
Martha
Little Women
(1949)
Amy
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(1958)
Maggie
The V.I.P.s
(1963)
Frances Andros
Jane Eyre
(1943)
Helen Burns
The Love Goddesses
(1965)
(archive footage)
Ivanhoe
(1952)
Rebecca
A Place in the Sun
(1951)
Angela Vickers
The Mirror Crack'd
(1980)
Marina Rudd
The Taming of the Shrew
(1967)
Katharina
Full Filmography
Acting
There's One Born Every Minute
(1942)
Gloria Twine
Lassie Come Home
(1943)
Priscilla
Jane Eyre
(1943)
Helen Burns
The White Cliffs of Dover
(1944)
Betsy Kenney at Age 10 (uncredited)
Twenty Years After
(1944)
(archive footage)
National Velvet
(1945)
Velvet Brown
Courage of Lassie
(1946)
Kathie Eleanor Merrick
Life with Father
(1947)
Mary Skinner
Cynthia
(1947)
Cynthia Bishop
Julia Misbehaves
(1948)
Susan Packett
A Date with Judy
(1948)
Carol Pringle
Little Women
(1949)
Amy
Conspirator
(1949)
Melinda Greyton
Father of the Bride
(1950)
Kay Banks
The Big Hangover
(1950)
Mary Belney
Father's Little Dividend
(1951)
Kay Dunstan
A Place in the Sun
(1951)
Angela Vickers
Callaway Went Thataway
(1951)
Elizabeth Taylor (uncredited)
Quo Vadis
(1951)
Christian Prisoner in Arena (uncredited)
Ivanhoe
(1952)
Rebecca
Love Is Better Than Ever
(1952)
Anastacia (Stacie) Macaboy
The Girl Who Had Everything
(1953)
Jean Latimer
Beau Brummell
(1954)
Lady Patricia Belham
Elephant Walk
(1954)
Ruth Wiley
The Last Time I Saw Paris
(1954)
Helen Ellswirth
Rhapsody
(1954)
Louise Durant
A Star Is Born World Premiere
(1954)
Self
Giant
(1956)
Leslie Lynnton Benedict
New York Premiere Telecast 'Giant'
(1956)
Self
Raintree County
(1957)
Susanna Drake Shawnessy
Operation Raintree
(1957)
Self
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(1958)
Maggie
Suddenly, Last Summer
(1959)
Catherine Holly
BUtterfield 8
(1960)
Gloria Wandrous
Scent of Mystery
(1960)
Woman of Mystery
Cleopatra
(1963)
Cleopatra
The V.I.P.s
(1963)
Frances Andros
Elizabeth Taylor in London
(1963)
Herself
On the Trail of the Iguana
(1964)
Self
Becket
(1964)
Blonde Village Woman (uncredited)
The Sandpiper
(1965)
Laura Reynolds
The Big Sur
(1965)
Self
A Statue for 'The Sandpiper'
(1965)
Self
The Love Goddesses
(1965)
(archive footage)
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(1966)
Martha
Reflections in a Golden Eye
(1967)
Leonora Penderton
The Taming of the Shrew
(1967)
Katharina
The Comedians
(1967)
Martha Pineda
Doctor Faustus
(1967)
Helen of Troy
The Comedians in Africa
(1967)
Self (uncredited)
Secret Ceremony
(1968)
Leonora
Boom!
(1968)
Flora 'Sissy' Goforth
Around the World of Mike Todd
(1968)
Self
On Location: Where Eagles Dare
(1968)
Anne of the Thousand Days
(1969)
Masked Courtesan (uncredited)
The Only Game in Town
(1970)
Fran Walker
Zee and Co.
(1971)
Zee Blakeley
Under Milk Wood
(1972)
Rosie Probert
Hammersmith Is Out
(1972)
Jimmie Jean Jackson
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
(1972)
Self (archive footage)
Night Watch
(1973)
Ellen Wheeler
Ash Wednesday
(1973)
Barbara Sawyer
Identikit
(1974)
Lise
That's Entertainment!
(1974)
Self - Host / Narrator
Elizabeth Taylor: An Intimate Portrait
(1975)
Self
Victory at Entebbe
(1976)
Edra Vilnofsky
The Blue Bird
(1976)
Queen of Light / Mother / Witch / Maternal Love
That's Entertainment, Part II
(1976)
(archive footage)
TVTV Looks at the Oscars
(1976)
Self
A Little Night Music
(1977)
Desiree Armfeldt
A Death in Canaan
(1978)
Self (voice) (uncredited)
Return Engagement
(1978)
Dr. Emily Loomis
Winter Kills
(1979)
Lola Comante (uncredited)
The Mirror Crack'd
(1980)
Marina Rudd
Genocide
(1982)
Narrator (voice)
Night of 100 Stars
(1982)
Self
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
(1983)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Between Friends
(1983)
Deborah Shapiro
Notre Dame de la Croisette
(1983)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Malice in Wonderland
(1985)
Louella Parsons
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
(1985)
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
(1985)
Self (archive footage)
There Must Be a Pony
(1986)
Marguerite Sydney
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
(1986)
Self
Super Duper Bloopers
(1986)
Herself
Poker Alice
(1987)
Alice Moffit
Montgomery Clift: The Hidden Star
(1987)
Self (archive footage)
Young Toscanini
(1988)
Nadina Bulichoff
In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton
(1988)
Self (Archive Footage)
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
(1988)
Self (archive footage)
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
(1988)
Self
Sweet Bird of Youth
(1989)
Alexandra Del Lago
John Huston: The Man, the Movies, the Maverick
(1989)
Self (archive footage)
Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt
(1989)
Self - Introduction Speaker
Marilyn: Something's Got to Give
(1990)
Self (archive footage)
The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
(1992)
Self
Audrey Hepburn: Remembered
(1993)
Self
The Flintstones
(1994)
Pearl Slaghoople
That's Entertainment! III
(1994)
(archive footage)
The Jackson Family Honors
(1994)
Self
How to Be Absolutely Fabulous
(1995)
Self
Roger Moore: A Matter Of Class
(1995)
Self (archive footage)
Return to 'Giant'
(1996)
Self (archive footage)
Happy Birthday Elizabeth: A Celebration of Life
(1997)
Elizabeth Taylor: A Musical Celebration
(2000)
Self
These Old Broads
(2001)
Beryl Mason
Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood
(2001)
Self (archive footage)
Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration
(2001)
Self
George Stevens and His Place In The Sun
(2001)
Self
AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Barbra Streisand
(2001)
Self
Searching for Debra Winger
(2002)
Self (uncredited)
Edith Head: The Paramount Years
(2002)
(archive footage)
Michael Jackson's Private Home Movies
(2003)
Self (archive footage)
Judy Garland: By Myself
(2004)
Self (archive footage)
A Letter To True
(2004)
Self (archive footage)
Moonwalking: The True Story of Michael Jackson - Uncensored
(2009)
Self (archive footage)
Waking Sleeping Beauty
(2009)
Self (archive footage)
Michael Jackson: The Inside Story - What Killed the King of Pop?
(2010)
Self (archive footage)
Smash His Camera
(2010)
Self (archive footage)
Classic TV Bloopers Uncensored
(2011)
Herself
And the Oscar Goes To...
(2014)
Self (archive footage)
The End of a Beautiful Epoch
(2015)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Children of 'Giant'
(2015)
Self (archive footage)
Chavela
(2017)
Herself (archive footage)
Sword-and-Sandal
(2019)
Self (archive footage)
Charles Bronson: The Spirit of Masculinity
(2020)
Self (archive footage)
Rat Pack
(2022)
Self (archive footage)
Paul Newman: The Restless
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
AFI Life Achievement Award: 50th Anniversary Special
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
Production